Roof or skylight construction



Aug. 9,1927. A SHUMAN ROOF 0R SKYLIGHT CONSTRUCTION Filed Dec. 20; 1924 I'W'RWP/VEV.

W/T/VESS: W M F765 Patented Aug. 9, 192 7.

UNITED STATE ARNO SHUMAN, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO PENNSYLVANIA WIRE GLASS COMPANY, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF JEnsnY.

ROOF OR SKYLIGHT CONSTRUCTION.

Application filed December 20, 1924. Serial'No. 757,089.

I of flat glass.

The principal objects of the present invention are to provide a roof or skylight construction which can be installed or repaired from the outside or top without'requiring the erection of scaffolding inside or beneath the roof or skylight construction; to provide a roof or skylight construction of which the parts can be made or fabricated. at a shop or factory leaving only thework of assembly to be done on the job; to provide in the structure of the roof or skylight construction a deformation of the skylight or roof bar which gives rise to a wedging effect that provides and insures stability; to provide in the roofor skylight construction an adjustment 1 adapted to compensate for irregularities, if any, in the alignment of the purlins; and to facilitate and cheapen the installation and construction of a roof or skylight;

The invention com rises the improvements to be presently descri ed and finally claimed.

In the following description reference will be made to the accompanying drawings forming part hereof and in which there is shown an embodiment of the invention selected from among other embodiments for the sake of illustration, and in the drawings Figure 1 is a sectional view taken crosswise' of the purlins and illustrating roof or skylight construction embodying features of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a top-or plan View of a portion of the roof or skylight construction-embodying features of the invention with the glass and weather stripping omitted.

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view taken crosswise of the urlins, drawn to an enlarged scale, and illustrative of a complete roof or skylight construction embodying featuresv of the invention. 7

Fig. 4 is a sample transverse sectional View taken parallel with the purlins, and

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken generally on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3 lookin upward and illustrating in an exag erated egree the deformation of a roof or skylight bar. D

In the drawings 1 are purlins, and 2 indicates rafters or rafter-like supports for the purlins. 3 are roof or skylight bars arranged on top of the purlins and they are gage the purlins and which are provided with upturned toes 7 taking into the gutters of the bars. The toes 7 are shownas of blunt Wedge .shape' to conform to the crosssection of the bars 3. 8 are carriage bolts, meaning bolts with squared shanks, interposed between the plates 5 and shackles 4 and operating to cause the plates and shackles in co-operation with the purlins to deform the bars as generally indicated at a in Fig. 5,

and insure endwise stability of the bars in the direction of the eaves as indicated at b in Fig.1. 9 and 10 are sheets of glass IGSU mg on top of the lpurlins with their margins spaced apart at t e bars, asindicated at 11 in Fig. 4. The sheets of glass are shown as corrugated. .While two sheets in over-- lapping relation at or near the purlins have been referred to, more than two sheets may be employed as in the case of large'roofs and only one sheet may be employed as in the case of small skylights, referring of'course to the rafter direction of the'roof and as many sheets may be' employed in the purlin direction of the roof as may be required, 12 are metal strips overlying the adjoining margins of the glass sheets and covering the bars 3, andthese strips are provided with hooked ends or toes, 13 engaging the eave edges of the sheets. Felt or the like 14 may be interposed between the metal strips and the sheets of glass. 15 are screws disposed at intervals which may be regular and they penetrate the strips and have their pointed shanks engaging the bars3, or more acshackles 4 are slipped onto the bars with the carriage bolts and clamp plates 5 connected With them. Inasmuch as the clamps as a whole are movable along the bars the clamps can be positioned in engagement with the flanges at the purlins even though the latter are somewhat out of alignment or are not straight, and'this can be done by workmen on'top ofthe roof. The workmen may then tighten the carriage bolts thus drawing up the clamps and more or less deforming the bars as has been described so that the bars are held firmly in position to support the weight of the glass against movement in the direction of the eaves. The glass is then laid and the weather strips applied along with the washers 16 and screws 15. Inasmuch as the screws 15 are pointed they can be readily inserted into the tapped holes in the bars nearest to the eaves. Since the holes in the Weather strips and in the bars are spaced alike it is quite easy to apply the rest of the screws along the bars from the outside or top of the roof. Evidently the clamps hold the bars against movement in respect to the eaves and the bars hold the strips which in turn hold the glass, so that the finished construction is firm and well held together. At the same time the elements of the construction during-its installation are sufliciently movable to permit of proper alignment of the edges of the glass at the eavesalthough the purlins may not-be quite straight. From the foregoing descriptlon it is evident that no scaffolding is required for the'erection of the roof or skyhght and in that way a very material economy is efl'ected. Of course no scaffolding is required for the renewal of glass since such renewal can be effected from the outside of accessible.

the roof because the screws 15 are readily -By way of further explanation of Fig. 4, it may be said that the screw 15 at the top of the figure may be-considered to be the screw 15 shown in Fig. 3, and the screw 15 shown at the intermediate portion of the height of Fig. 4 may be said to be a screw 15 not shown in Fig. 3 but which wouldappear at the next space toward the left if'Fig. 3

were continued beyond the confines. of the It willbe obvious to those skilled in the artto which the invention relates that modifications may be made in details of constructhe gutters of the bars, carriage bolts interposed between the plates and shackles and tion and arrangement and in matters of till) operative to cause'deformation of the bars,

sheets of corrugated glass resting on the purlins with their margins spaced apart at the bars, metal strips overlying the adjoining margins of the sheets and covering the bars and provided with toes engaging the 'eave posed at regular intervals and penetrating the strips and engaging tapped holes provided in the ridge faces of the bars.

ARNO SHTN.

edges of the sheets, and pointed screws dis- 

